12 So-Easy Hair Updates for Spring

New season, new you? Nah. If you're not ready to change your entire hairstyle just because you dug out your short-sleeved shirts and miniskirts from storage, try one of these simple ways to update your cut, color, or style.

Traditionally, volume is created up and around the crown of your head. Like when you set hot rollers, you line them up perpendicularly to your part, where a Bumpit would go. (Yes, we went there.) And when you use volumizing products, you likely apply them to your roots. For a different look, build outward instead of upward. "Instead of volume at the crown, put waves through the sides instead of at the top," says Matt Fugate, a hairstylist at the Serge Normant at John Frieda salon in New York City. "That can be very cool." Curling irons are easiest for this, and don't forget to work your favorite volumizer down further into the midsections of your hair than you normally would, leaving the top more natural.

You know that feeling when you're at a new salon and the stylist gives you a blowout and your part is totally off? You feel like a different person, but then you get home and realize it's one of the simplest ways to change your look, and you kind of love it. "Middle parts change the symmetry of your face. Or you can swoop to one side. The way you expose your face can always be different," says Fugate. If you have bangs, though, he notes that you might have to tweak your cut a tad.

Everyone and her mother (Gigi Hadid and her mother, Yolanda, specifically) is slicking their hair back. Once reserved for tight ponytails, now it's chic to leave the elastic out of the picture for a sporty, edgy effect. In terms of which product you should use to get the look, Fugate says, "A lot of it is second- or third-day hair—natural oils become a styling product. Creams are good for that kind of stuff, and serums are better than gels, but it depends on how unruly your hair is." His favorites: Kérastase Discipline Fluidissime spray for fine hair and Biolage Styling Agave Nectar Control Gel if your hair is on the unruly side of the spectrum.

Just like the seasonal sartorial battle between the stiletto and the chunky heel, the recent haircut trends oscillate between a wispy shag and a blunt bob. But Fugate offers an easy tip to bring to your stylist that shouldn't force you to lose inches. "Have [your stylist] cut with thinning scissors instead of normal, blunt scissors. It'll be airier," he says. It works the other way around, too, but keep in mind: If you're trying to grow out your bangs, opt for less-obvious, wispy ends.

Hair glosses and glazes both lend shine, and both are temporary—so for the commitment-phobes among us, this is the way to go. And FYI: Glazes only sit on top of your hair, so they're more semipermanent than glosses are. Talk to your colorist about what works for you and your hair.

Do you remember topsy tails? They're back in action—and not just with the 12-year-old set. Prabal Gurung showed a flipped-ponytail look at his fall 2016 show, and it was anything but childish. And Fugate says it'll look extra pretty if you have a dimensional hair color. "Because everything is being balayaged and painted now, when you twist and roll, you aren't seeing lines from foils," he says.

This might sound like common sense, but updos aren't common in the colder months because, well, we have ears. With the temperature rising, you have more options. This style gets you through a ton of washes due to the fact that it conceals greasy roots—just make sure you don't blast your hair with too much dry shampoo. Too much can be drying.

If you like the general idea of your haircut and don't want to lose too much length, change the shape of the lines. "Instead of it being Marcia Brady straight, you can do a slight curve or V in the back, and it makes a difference," says Fugate, who gave this cut to more than a couple Allure editors recently. "A little angle is flattering, so it doesn't draw attention to the width of your back," he says.

The last thing you want to do when the temperatures heat up is turn on your heat tools. But that doesn't mean you can't fit a playful curl in here and there using good, old-fashioned pillow rollers. Fugate swears by them for "fun, kinky, messy texture."

Mermaid hair might not be a trend anymore, per se. But for anyone who wants waist-length hair without waiting five to seven years, use clip-ins to go from chin length to modern-day Rapunzel in five minutes.

Are you in a committed relationship with your flatiron or blow-dryer? Let us be your hair therapist this spring with this advice: Embrace your natural texture. Let your curling iron collect dust for a few months' time, and you'll be shocked at how healthy your hair will feel. Trust.